TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Parents of children suffering from seizure disorders are asking Kansas lawmakers to legalize hemp oil.
The Wichita Eagle reports that the House Health and Human Services Committee had a hearing Tuesday on a bill sponsored by Democratic Rep. John Wilson of Lawrence.
Parent Ryan Reed testified that he and his wife feed their 4-year-old son Otis hemp oil with a spoonful of apple sauce three times a day so that he can sleep soundly.
The Reeds once lived in Wilson’s district but moved last year to Colorado Springs last year, because medical marijuana is legal there. The Kansas bill would be limited to hemp oil.
But the Kansas police chiefs’ association opposed the measure and argued it could lead to a broader legalization of marijuana.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach says more new businesses were formed in Kansas in 2014 than at any point since 2003.
Kobach said at a news conference Tuesday that 15,780 new businesses were formed — 311 more than in 2013. Kobach says this indicates that a 2012 move to exempt 191,000 business owners from income taxes had succeeded in attracting investment. However, he did not say how many of the new businesses were of the specific designation that received the 2012 tax cuts.
Critics of the current administration have said that some business owners are closing existing businesses and re-registering them with new designations for tax reasons and therefore the numbers do not indicate growth.
In 2014, 2,676 businesses dissolved in Kansas. That’s 373 more than in 2013.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas House committee has approved rival proposals for changing how state Supreme Court justices are selected.
Justices would be elected under one proposal clearing the Judiciary Committee. Under the other plan, the governor would appoint the justices directly, subject to Senate confirmation.
Currently, a lawyer-led commission screens applicants for Supreme Court vacancies and names three finalists. The governor must pick one, with no role for lawmakers.
Republican Rep. Mark Kahrs of Wichita said Tuesday that the decisions of the Judiciary Committee represent progress in reforming judicial selection.
But Democratic Rep. John Carmichael of Wichita said there’s no reason to change the selection process.
The House committee approved the two rival proposals Monday on 13-9 votes. Debates by the full House have not been scheduled.
The St Joseph School District’s questionable expenditures and other financial obstacles could result in a decline of the district’s financial condition.
So says Missouri State Auditor Tom Schweich in a scathing report on his audit of the district. The district received an overall rating of “poor,” the first such rating for a school district in four years.
It all started with stipends, and Schweich says that was perhaps the biggest problem auditors found. The announcement Tuesday was delivered in a new school that came in cheaper than the stipends.
Scheich told a gathering at the new Oak Grove Elementary School that a staggering $25 million in stipends were paid over the last eight years that were “either unapproved, unauthorized or improper.” He estimated that total to be in excess of $40 million dating back to 2001. $3.8 million in stipends were paid in 2013-2014.
The audit report recommended a formal compensation study, revised salary schedules and the elimination of unnecessary stipends. They recommended a review of vehicle allowances and travel stipends, and said the Board should consider eliminating unnecessary additional compensation payments.
In the formal report, the St Joseph Board of Education said a compensation study is already in the works and will be evaluated. The board noted that it had adopted a salary index for the 2015-2016 school year that incorporated administrative stipends into salaries. The board promised close oversight of how employees are placed on the salary index “according to duties and responsibilities.”
The Board asserted that all contracts and salary notifications will be available for the Board to review and audit.
The district will also review vehicle allowances and eliminate travel stipends when possible, and said it would consider eliminating unnecessary additional compensation payments in the future, according to the board’s response.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Younger Americans are struggling to keep up with steadily-rising student debt loads, a burden that is limiting their ability to buy homes.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York says the percentage of student loans that are 90 days or more overdue rose to 11.3 percent in the final three months of last year, up from 11.1 percent in the previous quarter. That’s the highest in a year. Total student borrowing now stands at $1.16 trillion, the most on record and 7.1 percent higher than 12 months earlier.
Previous research by the New York Fed has found that younger Americans with student loans are less likely to take out mortgages than those without student debt. That’s a reversal from the pre-recession pattern.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The museum that houses the National Toy Hall of Fame is establishing a World Video Game Hall of Fame.
The Strong museum in Rochester says the video hall announced Tuesday will recognize electronic games of all types: arcade, console, computer, handheld and mobile.
The toy hall of fame will provide the model for the video version. Anyone will be able to nominate a video game, and an internal advisory committee will choose finalists. An international selection committee of experts will choose inductees from there, based on four criteria: icon-status, longevity, geographical reach and influence.
Nominations for the inaugural class are being accepted through the end of March.
The Strong has been preserving and collecting video games and artifacts for years through its International Center for the History of Electronic Games.
The Missouri State Auditor’s Office released a scathing report of the compensation, payroll procedures and policies of the St Joseph School District, confirming, and sometimes greatly exceeding off-the-record reports of improper and unapproved payments by school officials.
The district received an overall rating of “poor.” State Auditor Tom Schweich said “probably the most important problems we found were in the areas of compensation and payroll. Schweich
In a report released Tuesday, the Missouri State Auditor’s Office gave the St Joseph School District an overall rating of “poor.”
The report was critical of the district’s practices in a number of areas, including compensation, payroll procedures record-keeping and policies, summer school funding, the district’s financial condition, bonds, procurement procedures and construction projects.
The Citizen’s Summary of the audit report indicates that “the district’s use of its existing salary schedules and stipend systems has results in a confusing, inconsistently applied and poorly documented system of compensation.”
“…Salary schedules were not complete or always properly approved, there were no salary schedules for some classes of employees, and the district did not have adequate documentation to support some employees placement and advancement on respective salary schedules.”
“…The district failed to establish adequate policies and procedures regarding stipends, does not maintain adequate documentation of the stipend amounts paid to employees, and the School Board does not approve most stipends given to employees.”
“…Stipend payments totaled $3.8 million for the 2013-2014 school year. In addition, some additional compensation appears questionable and unnecessary, and the district is not complying with its overtime policies.”
“…the district does not have policies regarding related employees, and the School Board does not adequately safeguard electronic signatures. Also personnel records are not complete, the district does not monitor personal use of district vehicles, and the district does not have a policy regarding vacation leave payments to retired employees.”
“…The district inaccurately reported 2014 and 2013 summer school attendance to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, resulting in an overpayment of state aid totaling approximately $3.5 million.”
“…the district’s questionable expenditures and other financial obstacles could result in a decline of the district’s financial condition.”
“…The district is not complying with the requirements of the Qualified Zone Academy program, is not reporting bond compliance as required, and sold $31,870,000 of general obligation bonds in 2012 and 2013 through negotiated instead of competitive sales.”
The report was also critical of the School Board, which “…did not always comply with the Sunshine Law and held numerous improper closed meetings.”
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Schools would be barred from giving sex education lessons to students without their parents’ consent under a bill before the Kansas Legislature.
The House Education Committee held a hearing on the bill Tuesday that would require school districts to share any sexual education materials with parents and obtain their written consent before teaching it to their children. Several parents and teachers testified in favor of the bill, saying that while some districts have already instituted similar policies, many districts do not properly inform parents about potentially inappropriate material in curriculums.
Opponents included two pastors and a priest, who testified the bill would deprive children of information important to their health.
An identical bill was endorsed by the committee last year, but did not pass beyond the House floor.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas lawmakers have approved rules limiting a common practice used to rush legislation to passage.
The House voted 83-38 on Tuesday to approve rules governing interactions between the two chambers. The Senate approved the rules on a 27-7 vote Monday.
The Senate was not scheduling debates on bills until the joint rules were settled.
The two chambers disagreed over limiting the bundling of separate bills into the final version of a single measure on a broad topic such as insurance or agriculture. Critics say the practice leads to sloppy lawmaking.
The joint rules will allow up to five bills to be bundled, with an exception for tax measures.
The House had wanted to allow only two bills to be bundled, while the Senate initially sought no limit.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Parents of children suffering from seizure disorders are asking Kansas lawmakers to legalize hemp oil.
